LG's stretchable display grows by up to 50 percent

LG Display has been working on stretchable screens for years. According to the South Korean tech company, a prototype that has now been unveiled can be stretched by up to 50 percent of its original size. This is the best value the display industry has achieved to date.

Specifically, the prototype is 12 inches in size and can be expanded to an 18-inch format. The micro-LED display can display RGB colors. LG specifies the resolution in PPI (pixels per inch), although PPI depends on the size of the display. It is likely that the stated 100 PPI refers to the original format of 12 inches.

This is a little low for practical use: e-readers such as Amazon's Kindle usually have resolutions of 300 PPI, while cell phones can easily achieve 400 PPI and upwards. To reach market maturity, LG would therefore have to improve the resolution of its stretchable display, among other things.

Heat-resistant and durable

The new prototype from LG should be more durable than previous attempts, LG writes in a press release. The display should be able to be stretched over 10,000 times. The display should also be able to withstand extreme temperatures and the effects of force without any loss of image quality.

LG presented an initial prototype in 2022. However, this was only able to grow by 20 percent of its original size. The stretchable LG displays can also be bent and folded. LG and other display manufacturers are constantly trying to demonstrate application scenarios for flexible displays. LG sees stretchable displays being used in clothing and on the skin, among other things. Such displays could be used in fashion, wearables or mobility, writes LG. Firefighters could use such displays to display live information, for example.

The development of stretchable displays is supported by the South Korean government. LG is working with 19 other companies and research institutes from South Korea on the development.

(dahe)